We Believe: Doctrines of Mormonism

Monday, December 2, 2013

Teaching

List of Doctrines on "Teaching"

801. Teachers of the gospel are to teach the official views and doctrines of the Church set forth in the Church-published words of the prophets.

802. To convincingly teach the gospel we must live the gospel.

803. Before we can effectively teach the gospel we must first obtain an understanding of the gospel.

804. Church members are to teach only under direction of the Spirit, without which they are commanded not to teach.

805. Church teachers are to avoid discussion of theories and "mysteries"—subjects not taught by the prophets.

806. All members of the Church are to confine their public interpretations of doctrine to those that are in harmony with the President of the Church.

801. Teachers of the gospel are to teach the official views and doctrines of the Church set forth in the Church-published words of the prophets.

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
Elder Spencer W. Kimball
Mark E. Petersen
President Joseph F. Smith
Mormon
Joseph Smith
President Ezra Taft Benson
Joseph Smith
Orson Pratt
Hyrum Smith
Elder Spencer W. Kimball
Related Witnesses
Joseph Smith
Jesus
Nephi, son of Lehi
President Harold B. Lee
Peter
Jesus
President Heber J. Grant

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

You are to teach this Gospel using as your sources and authorities the Standard Works of the Church, and the words of those whom God has called to lead His people in these last days. You are not, whether high or low, to intrude into your work your own peculiar philosophy, no matter what its source or how pleasing or rational it seems to you to be. To do so would be to have as many different churches as we have seminaries—and that is chaos.
You are not, whether high or low, to change the doctrines of the Church or to modify them, as they are declared by and in the Standard Works of the Church and by those whose authority it is to declare the mind and will of the Lord to the Church. The Lord has declared he is "the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Speaking in behalf of the First Presidency [see letter of First Presidency, MOFP6:208-09] to seminary, institute, and Church school teachers at Aspen Grove. Entire speech published in Deseret News, Church Section, Aug. 13, 1938 and in IE1938Sep:520ff; copied in MOFP6:44-58. The speech was extracted for use as Lesson 18 of the Melchizedek Priesthood Course of Study, 1969-70, p. 129ff) MOFP6:55; TLDP:671

Elder Spencer W. Kimball

There are great numbers of unusually splendid and talented members of the Church all through the world who are intelligent and well-meaning, but I repeat again the statement I made in conference: That while they may think as they please, no one has the right to give his own private interpretations when he has been invited to teach in the organizations of the Church: he is a guest; he has been given an authoritative position and the stamp of approval is placed upon him, and those whom he teaches are justified in assuming that, having been chosen and sustained in the proper order, he represents the Church and the things which he teaches are approved by the Church. No matter how brilliant he may be and how many new truths he may think he has found, he has no right to go beyond the program of the Church. Certainly if any one or group of individuals have felt they have advanced inspiration or revelation, there is a way by which they can present it for approval. [Italics added] (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, pp. 532-33) TLDP:672-73

Mark E. Petersen

It is my full belief that whenever any of us accepts a position of any description in the Church, we accept along with it the responsibility of that office, whatsoever it may be. I believe that if a person accepts a position as a teacher in one of our organizations, or if he accepts the responsibility of preaching from the pulpit, such person accepts the responsibility which goes with that call. He becomes a representative of the Church in that position. Every teacher and every preacher therefore is duty bound, upon accepting such a call, to represent the official views and doctrines of the Church, and to teach those official doctrines in his class or from the pulpit with the one thought in mind that conversion is to come about in the hearts of those who listen to him. I do not believe that conversion to the truth comes through the teaching of half-truths or untruths.
Our classrooms and our assembly rooms have been built at great expense with one thought in mind, and that is that in them we may teach the truth so that we may convert those who come there, so that they in turn will live the gospel and work out their salvation in the earth. CR1953Apr:83

President Joseph F. Smith

We have nothing that is not in common with the Latter-day Saints. We know nothing, and we will preach nothing to the people except that which the Lord God has revealed, and we advise and counsel those who are in authority, and whose duty and business it is to teach and preach the principles of the gospel to the world and to the Latter-day Saints, to confine their teachings and their instructions to the word of God that has been revealed. CR1917Oct:5

Mormon

And he commanded them that they should teach nothing save it were the things which he had taught, and which had been spoken by the mouth of the holy prophets. (Alma organizes the Church of Christ and ordains priests, about 148 B.C.) Mosiah 18:19

Joseph Smith

President Ezra Taft Benson,

also quoting Mormon and Joseph Smith
[W]hat should be the source for teaching the great plan of the Eternal God? The scriptures, of course—particularly the Book of Mormon. This should also include the other modern-day revelations. These should be coupled with the words of the Apostles and prophets and the promptings of the Spirit. Alma "commanded them that they should teach nothing save it were the things which he had taught, and which had been spoken by the mouth of the holy prophets" (Mosiah 18:19). The Doctrine and Covenants states: "Let them journey from thence preaching the word by the way, saying none other things than that which the prophets and apostles have written, and that which is taught them by the Comforter through the prayer of faith" (D&C 52:9). CR1987Apr:107

Joseph Smith

And let them journey from thence preaching the word by the way, saying none other things than that which the prophets and apostles have written, and that which is taught them by the Comforter through the prayer of faith. (Revelation for the elders of the Church, June 7, 1831; various elders sent to preach the gospel) D&C 52:9

Orson Pratt

Have we not a right to make up our minds in relation to the things recorded in the word of God, and speak about them, whether the living oracles believe our views or not? We have not the right. Why? Because the mind of man is weak: one man may make up his mind in this way, and another man may make up his mind in another way, and a third individual may have his views; and thus every man is left to be his own authority, and is governed by his own judgment, which he takes as his standard.
Do you not perceive that this would, in a short time, cause a complete disunion and division of sentiment throughout the whole Church? (Address printed in published message of the First Presidency of the Church, Sept. 22, 1860) MOFP2:219

Hyrum Smith

And again I say unto you, an elder has no business to undertake to preach mysteries in any part of the world, for God has commanded us all to preach nothing but the first principles unto the world. Neither has any elder any authority to preach any mysterious thing to any branch of the church unless he has a direct commandment from God to do so. Let the matter of the grand councils of heaven, and the making of Gods, worlds, and devils entirely alone: for you are not called to teach any such doctrine—for neither you nor the people are capacitated to understand any such principles—less so to teach them. For when God commands men to teach such principles the saints will receive them. Therefore beware what you teach for the mysteries of God are not given to all men; and unto those to whom they are given they are placed under restrictions to impart only such as God will command them, and the residue is to be kept in a faithful breast, otherwise he will be brought under condemnation. By this God will prove his faithful servants, who will be called and numbered with the chosen. (Times and Seasons, March 15, 1844, p. 474) TLDP:671

Elder Spencer W. Kimball

There are those today who seem to take pride in disagreeing with the orthodox teachings of the Church and who present their own opinions which are at variance with the revealed truth. Some may be partially innocent in the matter; others are feeding their own egotism; and some seem to be deliberate. Men may think as they please, but they have no right to impose upon others their unorthodox views. Such persons should realize that their own souls are in jeopardy. The Lord said to us through the Prophet Joseph:
"[T]each the principles of my gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in the which is the fulness of the gospel.
And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit.
. . . . And if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach." (D&C 42:12-14). . . .
If one cannot accept and teach the program of the Church in an orthodox way without reservations, he should not teach. . . .
And so we admonish the leaders in stakes, wards, and missions to be ever vigilant to see that no incorrect doctrines are promulgated in their classes or congregations. . . . And we warn again those who write or preach or otherwise teach subversive doctrines, that their punishment is sure for their "worm dieth not." CR1948Apr:109-10

Related Witnesses:

Joseph Smith

I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: "They draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof." (Vision of the Father and the Son, spring of 1820) JS-H 1:19

Jesus,
quoted by Mormon

And now it came to pass that when Jesus had said these words he said unto them again, after he had expounded all the scriptures unto them which they had received. . . .
14. And now it came to pass that when Jesus had expounded all the scriptures in one, which they had written, he commanded them that they should teach the things which he had expounded unto them. (The resurrected Jesus Christ instructs his disciples among the Nephite people, A.D. 34) 3 Nephi 23:6,14

Nephi, son of Lehi

Now it came to pass that I, Nephi, did teach my brethren these things; and it came to pass that I did read many things to them, which were engraven upon the plates of brass, that they might know concerning the doings of the Lord in other lands, among people of old.
23. And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses ; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning. (Nephi's writings, between 588-570 B.C.) 1 Nephi 19:22-23

President Harold B. Lee

I say that we need to teach our people to find their answers in the scriptures. . . . But the unfortunate thing is that so many of us are not reading the scriptures. We do not know what is in them, and therefore we speculate about the things that we ought to have found in the scriptures themselves. I think that therein is one of our biggest dangers of today. ("Find the Answers in the Scriptures," EN1972Dec:3) MPSG1984:3

Peter

[T]here shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. (Letter to members of the Church, about A.D. 60-64) 2 Peter 2:1

Jesus,
recorded in Luke

Woe unto you, lawyers for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: [the fulness of the scriptures (see revised version)] ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered. (Jesus reproaches the lawyers) Luke 11:52

President Heber J. Grant

Author's Note: See the topic in this book, REVELATION: (1) Law of Witness, which sets forth how we can always know what are the "official views" of the prophets.

When a gospel teacher supplements a lesson with material outside the lesson manual, it would appear that this doctrine tells us that such material must harmonize with the official views of the Church

In a church or seminary classroom setting, a "spiritually prepared" teacher is often challenged by an intellectual argument from some gifted student who, not being at the moment in the same spirit, is able to intellectually conceive of alternate ideas, ideas that argue against the teacher's sound and correct interpretation of a doctrine—(sound and correct because the teacher is "spiritually prepared" and teaches doctrine derived from the witnesses of more than one prophet in written scripture). Church members lose much on those occasions when they prefer to use their intellectual talent and judgment in matters pertaining to the Spirit instead of their spiritual discernment. When the Holy Ghost speaks through several prophets who say the same thing, we ought to let the Holy Ghost in us give full credence to those inspired words of the prophets. The Spirit should override the talent of our meager intellects. We ought to humbly and gratefully honor and respect those scriptural expressions of prophetic witnesses so they become part of our own spiritual fiber. Then the Spirit in us will also find room for deep gratitude toward those worthy prophets through whom the Lord has spoken.

802. To convincingly teach the gospel we must live the gospel.

President Heber J. Grant
Marion G. Romney
Paul
Richard L. Evans
President Brigham Young
Melvin J. Ballard
Hugh B. Brown
Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Related Witnesses
Jesus
Jesus
Nephi, son of Lehi

President Heber J. Grant

No man can teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ under the inspiration of the living God and with power from on high unless he is living it. He can go on as a member and we will pray for him, no matter how many years it may require, and we will never put a block in his way, because the Gospel is one of love and of forgiveness, but we want true men and women as our officers in the Priesthood and in the Relief Societies. And a man has no right to be in a high council who can not stand up and say that he knows the Gospel is true and that he is living it. CR1938Apr:15

Marion G. Romney

For those of us who desire to effectively share the gospel, there are some very important lessons taught in this message: We must put our lives in order so the Lord's Spirit can influence our thoughts and actions—so we can be taught from on high. ("Records of Great Worth," EN1980Sept:7) TLDP:670-71

Paul

Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel. (Paul writes to the Church at Corinth, Greece, about A.D. 55) 1 Corinthians 9:14

Richard L. Evans

Abstract qualities of character don't mean much in the abstract. It is how we live, how we serve, how we teach our children, what we do from day to day that both indicate what we are and determine what we are; and all the theory and all the speculation, all the quoting of scripture, all the searching of the mysteries, and all the splitting of hairs, and all the knowledge of the letter of the law don't in the final and saving sense amount to very much unless we live the gospel, unless we keep the commandments, unless we prove the principles, unless we live lives of effectiveness, sincerity, and service. CR1966Apr:89-90

President Brigham Young,
quoted by John A. Widtsoe

A few words now, with regard to preaching. The greatest and loudest sermon that can be preached, or that ever was preached on the face of the earth, is practice. No other is equal to it. (In new Tabernacle, Aug. 16, 1868, JD12:271) DBY:336

Melvin J. Ballard

The most powerful sermon any of us shall ever preach will be the sermon of our lives. CR1934Oct:115

Hugh B. Brown

What the teacher is counts for more than what he says. CR1963Apr:89

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Now, my dear grandfathers, fathers, uncles, brothers, and friends of our young people, we can be of great help in this process. King Benjamin taught that when parents are truly converted, they "will teach [their children] to walk in the ways of truth and soberness [and] will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another" (Mosiah 4:15). It has been said, "Teaching by example is one way to teach." I would say, "Teaching by example is the best way to teach." ¶ Please teach our young people by your example of being a temple-worthy priesthood holder. Your good life, your love for God and fellow men, your applied testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ will be a convincing power to our youth, and it will help them to see the end from the beginning. (See the End from the Beginning, CR April 2006)

Related Witnesses:

Jesus,
recorded in Matthew

Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Jesus Christ teaches the multitude, about A.D. 30) Matthew 5:19

Jesus,
quoted by Joseph Smith,

translating Matthew
Whosoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so to do, he shall in no wise be saved in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever shall do and teach these commandments of the law until it be fulfilled, the same shall be called great, and shall be saved in the kingdom of heaven. (Jesus Christ teaches the multitude, about A.D. 30) JST (Matthew 5:21 in Appendix)

Nephi, son of Lehi

Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.
10. And the blood of the saints shall cry from the ground against them.
11. Yea, they have all gone out of the way; they have become corrupted.
12. Because of pride, and because of false teachers, and false doctrine, their churches have become corrupted, and their churches are lifted up; because of pride they are puffed up.
13. They rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries; they rob the poor because of their fine clothing; and they persecute the meek and the poor in heart, because in their pride they are puffed up.
14. They wear stiff necks and high heads; yea, and because of pride, and wickedness, and abominations, and whoredoms, they have all gone astray save it be a few, who are the humble followers of Christ; nevertheless, they are led, that in many instances they do err because they are taught by the precepts of men.
15. O the wise, and the learned, and the rich, that are puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and all those who preach false doctrines, and all those who commit whoredoms, and pervert the right way of the Lord, wo, wo, wo be unto them, saith the Lord God Almighty, for they shall be thrust down to hell (Nephi foretells of false teachers and false churches in the last days, and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, 559-545 B.C.) 2 Nephi 28:9-15

Author's Note: The Lord does not require perfection. We all sin, yet we are to strive to live the gospel principles. A teacher must not be a hypocrite, teaching what he or she does not even attempt to practice.

803. Before we can effectively teach the gospel we must first obtain an understanding of the gospel.

Joseph Smith
President Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball and Daniel H. Wells
Marion G. Romney
Howard W. Hunter
N. Eldon Tanner

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men. (Revelation for Hyrum Smith, May 1829) D&C 11:21

President Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball and Daniel H. Wells

(First Presidency)
This should be a lasting lesson to the Elders of Israel not to undertake to teach doctrine they do not understand. If the Saints can preserve themselves in a present salvation day by day, which is easy to be taught and comprehended, it will be well with them hereafter. (Published message of the First Presidency of the Church, Sept. 22, 1860) MOFP2:223

Marion G. Romney

As Latter-day Saints, we are commissioned to deliver that which we receive from the Lord to those we teach. Sometimes, though, we attempt to teach without first obtaining the proper information and spirit. . . .
For those of us who desire to effectively share the gospel, there are some very important lessons taught in this message: We must put our lives in order so the Lord's Spirit can influence our thoughts and actions—so we can be taught from on high. We must work and study his word with full desire until his teachings become our teachings. Then we will be able to speak with power and conviction. If we choose to follow some other path of preparation, we have no assurance of success. We will end up delivering our own ideas or some other man's ideas, and we will not be profitable servants of the Lord. The primary source of the Lord's word is in the standard works, augmented as needed by living prophets.
I feel that it is important for us to become familiar with these spiritual fundamentals. When I pray for the Spirit of the Lord to help me in my life and to teach, I pray for the spirit of revelation, the help of the Holy Ghost. ("Records of Great Worth," EN1980Sept:7) TLDP:670-71

Howard W. Hunter

From the scriptures . . . several things are made abundantly clear:
1. Every bearer of the priesthood within his sphere of influence and responsibility is to teach the gospel through precept and example. That is, he should be teaching by the example of living the gospel; also through words, learning experiences, and instructional materials.
2. Every bearer of the priesthood is to prepare himself to be an effective teacher by study, prayer, and faith.
3. Every bearer of the priesthood should seek the direction of the Spirit to guide him in his own life and to inspire him in his teaching efforts.
4. Every bearer of the priesthood has a sacred stewardship in the kingdom of God. Our time, our talents, our property, our priesthood callings are part of this stewardship. CR1971Apr:49-50

N. Eldon Tanner

If teachers only knew it, they could find enlightenment in the scriptures on any subject they might be teaching. Through accepting and living the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ, they would be entitled to the additional light and knowledge that comes through the Holy Ghost and the Spirit of God by which a man may know the truth of all things. Their learning would be enhanced and their ability to impart and instruct would be greatly increased as the gifts of the Spirit worked upon them. ("Right Answers," EN1973Oct:3) TLDP:673

804. Church members are to teach only under direction of the Spirit, without which they are commanded not to teach.

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Elder John Taylor
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Howard W. Hunter
Related Witnesses
Joseph Smith

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

[N]o one should be called upon to teach and no one should attempt to teach the doctrines of the Church unless he is fully converted and has an abiding testimony of their truth. This testimony can only be received through prayerful study and obedience to all the commandments of the Lord. No man or woman can teach by the Spirit what he or she does not practice. Sincerity, integrity and loyalty are essential factors, and these will be accompanied by the spirit of prayer. The Comforter, "who knoweth all things," we should rely on, and then our teachings shall be approved of our Father in Heaven. CHMR1:184-85; DCSM:83

Elder John Taylor

There is no man living, and there never was a man living, who was capable of teaching the things of God only as he was taught, instructed and directed by the spirit of revelation proceeding from the Almighty. And then there are no people competent to receive true intelligence and to form a correct judgment in relation to the sacred principles of eternal life, unless they are under the influence of the same spirit, and hence speakers and hearers are all in the hands of the Almighty. (General conference, Apr.il 1875, JD16:369) TLDP:668

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?
18. And if it be by some other way it is not of God.
19. And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?
20. If it be some other way it is not of God.
21. Therefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth?
22. Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together. (Revelation for the elders of the Church, May 1831) D&C 50:17-22

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

And again, the elders, priests and teachers of this church shall teach the principles of my gospel, which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in the which is the fulness of the gospel.
13. And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit.
14. And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach.
15. And all this ye shall observe to do as I have commanded concerning your teaching, until the fulness of my scriptures is given.
16. And as ye shall lift up your voices by the Comforter, ye shall speak and prophesy as seemeth me good; . . . (Revelation, Feb. 9, 1831) D&C 42:12-16
Joseph Smith
A fanciful and flowery and heated imagination beware of; because the things of God are of deep import; and time, and experience, and careful and ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out. Thy mind, O man if thou wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost heavens, and search into and contemplate the darkest abyss, and the broad expanse of eternity—thou must commune with God. How much more dignified and noble are the thoughts of God, than the vain imaginations of the human heart None but fools will trifle with the souls of men.
How vain and trifling have been our spirits, our conferences, our councils, our meetings, our private as well as public conversations—too low, too mean, too vulgar, too condescending for the dignified characters of the called and chosen of God, according to the purposes of His will, from before the foundation of the world We are called to hold the keys of the mysteries of those things that have been kept hid from the foundation of the world until now. (Epistle to the Church from Liberty Jail, Mar. 25, 1839) HC3:295-96

Howard W. Hunter

Related Witnesses:

Joseph Smith

805. Church teachers are to avoid discussion of theories and "mysteries"—subjects not taught by the prophets.

Joseph Smith
Elder Wilford Woodruff
Elder Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, John E. Page, Elder Wilford Woodruff, Elder John Taylor, George Albert Smith
Bruce R. McConkie
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
Stephen L. Richards
Related Witnesses
President Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, Charles W. Penrose
President Heber J. Grant
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Paul
Paul

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Oh ye elders of Israel, harken to my voice; and when you are sent into the world to preach, tell those things you are sent to tell; preach and cry aloud, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand; repent and believe the Gospel." Declare the first principles, and let mysteries alone, lest ye be overthrown. Never meddle with the visions of beasts and subjects you do not understand. (General conference in Nauvoo, Ill., April 8, 1843, on the floor of the temple) HC5:344; TPJS:292; DCSM:15

Elder Wilford Woodruff

The books used [in the Sunday Schools and Improvement Associations] should be almost without exception, the revelations of God as contained in ancient and modern Scripture, together with the other works of the Church. . . . In the theological and other classes all discussions should be avoided as much as possible on subjects which God in His wisdom has not yet fully revealed. We know there are many persons who appear to take more delight in dwelling upon questions which are mysterious and cannot very well, in our present state of knowledge, be answered than they do upon those subjects which are plain and simple and essential to present progress. . . . In our theological classes, quorum meetings and other assemblies, therefore, these debatable questions need not be discussed or be dwelt upon. . . . (An epistle to the Church from the President of the Twelve, Wilford Woodruff, upon the death of President John Taylor, Oct. 10, 1887) MOFP3:139

Elder Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, John E. Page, Elder Wilford Woodruff, Elder John Taylor, George Albert Smith

Be careful that you teach not for the word of God the commandments of men, nor the doctrines of men, nor the ordinances of men, inasmuch as you are God's messengers. Study the word of God, and preach it and not your opinions, for no man's opinion is worth a straw. Advance no principle but what you can prove, for one scriptural proof is worth ten thousand opinions. We would moreover say, abide by that revelation which says "Preach nothing but repentance to this generation," and leave the further mysteries of the kingdom till God shall tell you to preach them, which is not now. (Epistle from the Twelve Apostles, 1837) HC3:395-96

Bruce R. McConkie

Every gospel teacher—from the Chief Elder, who is Christ, to the least and lowest of his servants—must determine, in all teaching situations, what portion of eternal truth he will offer to his hearers of the moment. The gospel and its eternal truths are always the same; what was true two thousand years ago is true today. . . . The Lord gives his word to men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, confirming their hope, building each new revelation upon the foundations of the past, giving his children only that portion of his word which they are able to bear. . . . [T]he servants of the Lord [are to] go forth to teach what people are prepared to receive, nothing more. They are to declare glad tidings, to proclaim the message of the restoration, to teach the simple and easy doctrines, and to leave the mysteries alone. They are not to present lessons in calculus to students who must first learn arithmetic; they are not to reveal the mysteries of the kingdom until people believe the first principles: they are to give milk before meat.
Alma summarized the restrictions under which preachers of righteousness serve by saying: "It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him." Such is the universal principle; it is not how much the teacher knows, but how much the student is prepared to receive. [Italics added] Strong and deep doctrine, spoken to rebellious people, drives them further away and widens the gulf between them and the saints of God. [Alma 12:9]
Even the true saints—the believing disciples, those who have accepted the gospel and received the gift of the Holy Ghost—are not prepared to receive all things. We have the fulness of the everlasting gospel, meaning we have every truth, power, priesthood, and key needed to enable us to gain the fulness of salvation in our Father's kingdom. But we do not have, and are not yet prepared to receive, the fulness of gospel truth. (The Mortal Messiah, 2:235-37) TLDP:672-73

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

You are to teach this Gospel using as your sources and authorities the Standard Works of the Church, and the words of those whom God has called to lead His people in these last days. You are not, whether high or low, to intrude into your work your own peculiar philosophy, no matter what its source or how pleasing or rational it seems to you to be. To do so would be to have as many different churches as we have seminaries—and that is chaos.
You are not, whether high or low, to change the doctrines of the Church or to modify them, as they are declared by and in the Standard Works of the Church and by those whose authority it is to declare the mind and will of the Lord to the Church. The Lord has declared he is "the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Speaking in behalf of First Presidency [see letter of First Presidency, MOFP6:208-09] to seminary, institute, and Church school teachers at Aspen Grove. Entire speech published in Deseret News, Church Section, Aug. 13, 1938 and in IE1938Sep:520ff; copied in MOFP6:44-58. The speech was extracted for use as Lesson 18 of the Melchizedek Priesthood Course of Study 1969-70, p. 129ff) MOFP6:55; TLDP:671

Stephen L. Richards

Another thing for which I am likewise grateful is that there is substantially no variance or uncertainty in our missionary teaching. It is not necessary that there be long debates or discussions as to interpretations of doctrine. What we teach is the revelations which, for the most part are direct, certain, and unequivocal in their import. If any mysteries seem to arise, we leave the solution of such mysteries for future revelation. The Lord has given us sufficient for this day and time, and for the people who live in the world.
When I read of the discussions, debates, and sometimes controversies, arising among religious leaders and learned men as to the problems and programs for Christian churches, I assure you I am profoundly grateful to be identified with a lofty cause, whose course is so fully and accurately and permanently charted that all you have to do to know the way and perceive the light is to ask and discover what the revelations say and what the priesthood directs. It seems to me that all that should be necessary to guide the course of any Christian cause is a simple declaration of the divine nature of the Christ and his supremacy in the world as the author of divine law which governs in the affairs of men. CR1954Oct:96

Related Witnesses:

President Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, Charles W. Penrose

(First Presidency)
Dogmatic assertions do not take the place of revelation, and we should be satisfied with that which is accepted as doctrine, and not discuss matters that, after all disputes, are merely matters of theory. (Published message of the First Presidency of the Church, Jan. 1912; IE1912Mar:418) MOFP4:265

President Heber J. Grant

Teachers will do well to give up indoctrinating themselves in the Sectarianisms of the new "Divinity School theology. . . ."
In the teaching, the teachers will use verbiage and terminology which have become classic in the Church. . . .
Furthermore, teachers will not advance their own theories about the Gospel or Gospel principles. (Letter from First Presidency to Franklin L. West, Church commissioner of education, 1940) MOFP6:209
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.,
quoting Matthew Cowley
I am told that Brother Matt Cowley once voiced this idea: He said something of this sort, "You know, I am so busy trying to understand the first principles of the Gospel that I have no time for the mysteries." CR1960Apr:20

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

We who are called and ordained to the ministry or to teach in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints carry a very grave responsibility. Every man that teaches holds a great responsibility. And he that teaches error and leads men from the path of truth is committing one of the greatest crimes that it is possible for man to commit. If he, through his teachings, is presenting false doctrine, and leading men astray from that which is eternal truth, away from the kingdom of God, he is taking upon himself a grave responsibility for which he will have to answer at the judgment seat of God.
The Lord said in one of the early revelations before the organization of the Church that the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. Then he said if a man should labor all his days and convert but one soul, he should have great joy in the kingdom of our Father, and if he should convert many souls, then much greater would be that joy. Reversing the picture, he who blinds one soul, he who spreads error, he who destroys, through his teachings, divine truth, truth that would lead a man to the kingdom of God and to its fulness, how great shall be his condemnation and his punishment in eternity. For the destruction of a soul is the destruction of the greatest thing that has ever been created. . . .
No matter what you teach, if it is not of God, it is darkness. And eventually, no matter how well it may be received, it must come to an end. (Take Heed to Yourselves pp. 190-91) TLDP:668

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

The gospel is simple. There is nothing difficult about it. There are mysteries, no doubt. We do not need to bother about the mysteries, but the simple things pertaining to our salvation and exaltation we can understand. CR1958Oct:22

Paul

For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?
9. So likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? for ye shall speak into the air. (Paul writes to the Church at Corinth, Greece, about A.D. 55) 1 Corinthians 14:8-9

Paul

Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue. (Paul writes to the Church at Corinth, Greece, about A.D. 55) 1 Corinthians 14:19

Author's Note: We are encouraged to learn the "mysteries of God," as Ammon states in Alma 26:22. But it appears we are not to teach the mysteries until they are confirmed by the law of witnesses, by the voice of many prophets. This way we can avoid teaching views which do not harmonize with the official views of the Church. Orson Pratt once publicly expressed his regret at having done this very thing. He said: "There are a few things which have been a source of sorrow to myself. . . .
. . . . There are some points of doctrine which I have unfortunately thrown out before the people.
At the time I expressed those views, I did most sincerely believe that they were in accordance with the word of God. I did most sincerely suppose that I was justifying the truth. But I have since learned from my brethren that some of the doctrines I had advanced . . . were incorrect." Elder Pratt then proceeded to say why it is important not to teach our own views, even though sincere. "Have we not a right to make up our minds in relation to the things recorded in the word of God, and speak about them, whether the living oracles believe our views or not? We have not the right. Why? Because the mind of man is weak: one man may make up his mind in this way, and another man may make up his mind in another way, and a third individual may have his views; and thus every man is left to be his own authority, and is governed by his own judgment, which he takes as his standard.
Do you not perceive that this would, in a short time, cause a complete disunion and division of sentiment throughout the whole Church?" (MOFP2:219)
(Orson Pratt was, at times, publicly criticized by Brigham Young for teaching incorrect doctrine. But it is of great interest to note Brigham Young's famous tribute to Orson Pratt: "If Elder Pratt was chopped up in inch pieces, each piece would cry out Mormonism is true" (Brigham Young's secretary's journal, Oct. 1, 1860)

806. All members of the Church are to confine their public interpretations of doctrine to those that are in harmony with the President of the Church.

President Brigham Young, Elder Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Amasa M. Lyman, Ezra T. Benson, Charles C. Rich, Elder Lorenzo Snow, Erastus Snow, Franklin D. Richards, George Q. Cannon
Orson Pratt
Mark E. Petersen
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
Related Witnesses
Elder Spencer W. Kimball
Mormon
President Joseph F. Smith
President Joseph Fielding Smith
Anthon H. Lund, Charles W. Penrose
J. Reuben Clark, Jr., David O. McKay

President Brigham Young, Elder Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Amasa M. Lyman, Ezra T. Benson, Charles C. Rich, Elder Lorenzo Snow, Erastus Snow, Franklin D. Richards, George Q. Cannon

It ought to have been known, years ago, by every person in the Church—for ample teachings have been given on the point—that no member of the Church has the right to publish any doctrines, as the doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, without first submitting them for examination and approval to the First Presidency and the Twelve. There is but one man upon the earth, at one time, who holds the keys to receive commandments and revelations for the Church, and who has the authority to write doctrines by way of commandment unto the Church. And any man who so far forgets the order instituted by the Lord as to write and publish what may be termed new doctrines, without consulting with the First Presidency of the Church respecting them, places himself in a false position, and exposes himself to the power of darkness by violating his Priesthood.
While upon this subject, we wish to warn all the Elders of the Church, and to have it clearly understood by the members, that, in the future, whoever publishes any new doctrines without first taking this course, will be liable to lose his Priesthood. (Published proclamation of the First Presidency of the Church and the Twelve, Oct. 21, 1865) MOFP2:238-39

Orson Pratt,
quoted by President Brigham Young

There are a few things which have been a source of sorrow to myself, at different times, for many years.
Perhaps you may be desirous to know what they are. I will tell you. There are some points of doctrine which I have unfortunately thrown out before the people.
At the time I expressed those views, I did most sincerely believe that they were in accordance with the word of God. I did most sincerely suppose that I was justifying the truth. But I have since learned from my brethren that some of the doctrines I had advanced . . . were incorrect. Naturally being of a stubborn disposition, and having a kind of selfwill about me, and moreover supposing really and sincerely that I did understand what true doctrine was in relation to those points, I did not feel to yield to the judgment of my brethren, but believed they were in error. Now, was this right? No, it was not. Why? Because the Priesthood is the highest and only legitimate authority in the Church in these matters.
How is it about this? Have we not a right to make up our minds in relation to the things recorded in the word of God, and speak about them, whether the living oracles believe our views or not? We have not the right. Why? Because the mind of man is weak: one man may make up his mind in this way, and another man may make up his mind in another way, and a third individual may have his views; and thus every man is left to be his own authority, and is governed by his own judgment, which he takes as his standard.
Do you not perceive that this would, in a short time, cause a complete disunion and division of sentiment throughout the whole Church? . . .
"You have made this confession," says one; "and now we want to ask you a question on the subject. What do you believe concerning those points now?"
I will answer. . . . So far as revelation from the heavens is concerned, I have had none in relation to those points of doctrine. (Published message of the First Presidency of the Church, including primarily an address of Orson Pratt, Sr., Sept. 22, 1860) MOFP2:218-19

Mark E. Petersen

I believe that if a person accepts a position as a teacher in one of our organizations, or if he accepts the responsibility of preaching from the pulpit, such person accepts the responsibility which goes with that call. He becomes a representative of the Church in that position. Every teacher and every preacher therefore is duty bound, upon accepting such a call, to represent the official views and doctrines of the Church, and to teach those official doctrines in his class or from the pulpit with the one thought in mind that conversion is to come about in the hearts of those who listen to him. I do not believe that conversion to the truth comes through the teaching of half-truths or untruths.
Our classrooms and our assembly rooms have been built at great expense with one thought in mind, and that is that in them we may teach the truth so that we may convert those who come there, so that they in turn will live the gospel and work out their salvation in the earth. CR1953Apr:83

J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

You are not, whether high or low, to change the doctrines of the Church or to modify them, as they are declared by and in the Standard Works of the Church and by those whose authority it is to declare the mind and will of the Lord to the Church. The Lord had declared he is "the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Speaking in behalf of First Presidency [see letter of First Presidency, MOFP6:208-09] to seminary, institute, and Church school teachers at Aspen Grove. Entire speech published in Deseret News, Church Section, Aug. 13, 1938 and in IE1938Sep:520ff; copied in MOFP6:44-58. The speech was extracted for use as Lesson 18 of the Melchizedek Priesthood Course of Study 1969-70, p. 129ff) MPSG1969-70:137

Related Witnesses:

Elder Spencer W. Kimball

Mormon

President Joseph F. Smith

President Joseph Fielding Smith, Anthon H. Lund, Charles W. Penrose

(First Presidency),
quoted by
President George Albert Smith, J. Reuben Clark, Jr., David O. McKay

(First Presidency)
When visions, dreams, tongues, prophecy, impressions, or an extraordinary gift of inspiration conveys something out of harmony with the accepted revelations of the Church or contrary to the decisions of its constituted authorities, Latter-day Saints may know that it is not of God, no matter how plausible it may appear. Also, they should understand that directions for the guidance of the Church will come by revelation, through the head. (Published message of the First Presidency of the Church, Dec. 29, 1945, republishing a message of the previous First Presidency in 1913) MOFP6:244

Temples

List of Doctrines on "Temples"

807. The Lord commands the building of temples.

808. Temples are holy sanctuaries for sacred rites and ceremonies pertaining to the living and the dead.

809. Certain ordinances are to be administered only in a holy temple (including baptisms for the dead; washings and annointings; and endowments and sealings for the living and for the dead).

810. The temple endowment comprises the receiving of certain sacred ordinances necessary to enable us to gain salvation (in the celestial kingdom).

811. A temple is built that the Lord might have a place to manifest Himself to His people.

812. Church members must be clean and faithful to receive and benefit from the blessings of the temple.

807. The Lord commands the building of temples.

Bruce R. McConkie
President Spencer W. Kimball
Nathan
Joseph Smith
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Bruce R. McConkie

[W]henever the Lord has had a people on earth, from the days of Adam to the present moment, he has always commanded them to build temples so that they could be taught how to gain eternal life, and so that all of the ordinances of salvation and exaltation could be performed for and on their behalf. (The Mortal Messiah, 1:100) TLDP:675-76

President Spencer W. Kimball

We indicate that these revealed truths should come to the people in a house built to his name. The Lord said that all the anointings, baptisms for the dead, solemn assemblies, and memorials and oracles, and the revelations pertaining to the foundation of Zion should be done in these holy places, the temples. All such sacred matters should be attended to inside such a building as he commanded to be built. ACR(Auckland)1979:4

Nathan,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD, Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell in?
6. Whereas I have not dwelt in any house since the time that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. . . .
12. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee. . . .
13. He shall build an house for my name. . . . (David offers to build a house for the Lord, and the prophet Nathan responds) 2 Samuel 7:5-6,12-13

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

And again, verily I say unto you, how shall your washings be acceptable unto me, except ye perform them in a house which you have built to my name? 38. For, for this cause I commanded Moses that he should build a tabernacle, that they should bear it with them in the wilderness, and to build a house in the land of promise, that those ordinances might be revealed which had been hid from before the world was. (Revelation received Jan. 19, 1841, Nauvoo, Ill.) D&C 124:37-38

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

[T]he work of baptism and other saving ordinances for the dead; the endowments, and all the ordinances that have been revealed to be performed in the sacred edifices called temples, which we are under commandment from God always to build unto His holy name,—(D&C 124:39) these things have been revealed to us in this dispensation in greater fulness and in greater plainness than ever before in the history of the world so far as we know. CR1913Oct:9-10

808. Temples are holy sanctuaries for sacred rites and ceremonies pertaining to the living and the dead.

Elder Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Lyman Wight, Elder John Taylor, Elder Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Willard Richards
Joseph Smith
President George Albert Smith
James E. Faust
Related Witnesses
Joseph Smith

Elder Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Lyman Wight, Elder John Taylor, Elder Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Willard Richards

The time has come when the great Jehovah would have a resting place on earth, a habitation for his chosen, where his law shall be revealed, and his servants be endowed from on high, to bring together the honest in heart from the four winds; where the saints may enter the Baptismal font for their dead relations, so that they may be judged according to men in the flesh, and live according to God in the spirit, and come forth in the celestial kingdom; . . . a place where all the ordinances shall be made manifest and the saints shall unite in the songs of Zion, even praise, thanksgiving and hallelujahs to God and the Lamb, that he has wrought out their deliverance, and bound Satan fast in chains. (Epistle of the Twelve to the brethren scattered abroad on the continent of America) (Times and Seasons, Oct. 15, 1841, p. 569) TLDP:674

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

For, for this cause I commanded Moses that he should build a tabernacle, that they should bear it with them in the wilderness, and to build a house in the land of promise, that those ordinances might be revealed which had been hid from before the world was.
39. Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name.
40. And verily I say unto you, let this house be built unto my name, that I may reveal mine ordinances therein unto my people;
41. For I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times. (Revelation received Jan. 19, 1841; the Saints are commanded to build a temple) D&C 124:38-41

President George Albert Smith

Each of them [the temples] has been built to one great eternal purpose: to serve as a House of the Lord, to provide a place sacred and suitable for the performing of holy ordinances that bind on earth as in heaven—ordinances for the dead and for the living that assure those who receive them and who are faithful to their covenants, the possession and association of their families, worlds without end, and exaltation with them in the celestial kingdom of our Father. ("The Tenth Temple," IE1945Oct:561) TLDP:675

James E. Faust

President Hinckley has announced the building of more temples than there ever have been at any time in history. The need for temples all over the world is great. This is because they are spiritual sanctuaries. Those who attend the temples can find protection against Satan and his desire to destroy them and their families. (CR 1998Oct; Opening the Windows of Heaven, Ensign, November 1998, p.54)

Related Witnesses:

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name.
7. For behold, I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here; and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house.
8. Yea, I will appear unto my servants, and speak unto them with mine own voice, if my people will keep my commandments, and do not pollute this holy house.
9. Yea the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house.
10. And the fame of this house shall spread to foreign lands; and this is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people. Even so. Amen. (Vision manifested to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple, April 3, 1836) D&C 110:6-10

809. Certain ordinances are to be administered only in a holy temple (including baptisms for the dead; washings and annointings; and endowments and sealings for the living and for the dead).

Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
President Spencer W. Kimball
Bruce R. McConkie
President Brigham Young
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Related Witnesses
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Joseph Smith

What was the object of gathering the Jews, or the people of God in any age of the world? . . .
The main object was to build unto the Lord a house whereby He could reveal unto His people the ordinances of His house and the glories of His kingdom, and teach the people the way of salvation; for there are certain ordinances and principles that, when they are taught and practiced, must be done in a place or house built for that purpose.
It was the design of the councils of heaven before the world was, that the principles and laws of the priesthood should be predicated upon the gathering of the people in every age of the world. Jesus did everything to gather the people, and they would not be gathered, and He therefore poured out curses upon them. [See Matthew 23:37-39.] Ordinances instituted in the heavens before the foundation of the world, in the priesthood, for the salvation of men, are not to be altered or changed. All must be saved on the same principles.
It is for the same purpose that God gathers together His people in the last days, to build unto the Lord a house to prepare them for the ordinances and endowments, washings and anointings, etc. One of the ordinances of the house of the Lord is baptism for the dead. . . .
If a man gets a fullness of the priesthood of God, he has to get it in the same way that Jesus Christ obtained it, and that was by keeping all the commandments and obeying all the ordinances of the house of the Lord. (At the Stand in Nauvoo, Ill., June 11, 1843) HC5:423-24

President Spencer W. Kimball

The Lord said, "I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times." (D&C 124:41) There are many people who say, "Well, all a church has to do is to go into a meeting and decide things." That of course, is not true, for the Lord is at the head of the church, and he guides his leaders aright.
We indicate that these revealed truths should come to the people in a house built to his name. The Lord said that all the anointings, baptisms for the dead, solemn assemblies, and memorials and oracles, and the revelations pertaining to the foundation of Zion should be done in these holy places, the temples. All such sacred matters should be attended to inside such a building as he commanded to be built. ACR(Auckland)1979:4

Bruce R. McConkie

Why have temples? They are built by the tithing and sacrifice of the Lord's people; they are dedicated and given to him; they become his earthly houses; in them the mysteries of the kingdom are revealed; in them the pure in heart see God; in them men are sealed up unto eternal life—all to the end that man may become as his Maker, and live and reign forever in the heavenly Jerusalem, as part of the general assembly and Church of the Firstborn, where God and Christ are the judge of all. Of temples the Lord says: "Therein are the keys of the holy priesthood ordained, that you may receive honor and glory." In them, he says, his saints shall receive washing, anointing, baptisms, revelation, oracles, conversations, statutes, judgment, endowments, and sealings. In them are held solemn assemblies. In them the fulness of the priesthood is received and the patriarchal order conferred upon men. In them the family unit is made eternal. Because of them life eternal is available. With temples men can be exalted; without them there is no exaltation (D&C 124:28-40; 131:1-4; 132:1-33. (The Mortal Messiah, 1:99) TLDP:675-76

President Brigham Young

This Priesthood has been restored again, and by its authority we shall be connected with our fathers, by the ordinance of sealing. . . . This ordinance will not be performed anywhere but in a Temple; neither will children be sealed to their living parents in any other place than a Temple. . . . Children born unto parents before the latter enter into the fullness of the covenants, have to be sealed to them in a Temple to become legal heirs of the Priesthood. (At Franklin, Utah, Sept. 4, 1873, JD16:186) TLDP:676

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

One of the ordinances of the house of the Lord is baptism for the dead. God decreed before the foundation of the world that the ordinances should be administered in a font prepared for the purpose in the house of the Lord. (Sermon at the Stand, Nauvoo, Ill., June 11, 1843) TPJS:308

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

In regard to the law of the Priesthood, there should be a place where all nations shall come up from time to time to receive their endowments; and the Lord has said this shall be the place for the baptisms for the dead. (From an address at the Stand, Nauvoo, Ill., May 12, 1844) TPJS:367

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

For verily I say unto you, that after you have had sufficient time to build a house to me, wherein the ordinance of baptizing for the dead belongeth, and for which the same was instituted from before the foundation of the world, your baptisms for your dead cannot be acceptable unto me;
34. For therein are the keys of the holy priesthood ordained, that you may receive honor and glory. . . .
38. For, for this cause I commanded Moses that he should build a tabernacle, that they should bear it with them in the wilderness, and to build a house in the land of promise, that those ordinances might be revealed which had been hid from before the world was.
39. Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name.
40. And verily I say unto you, let this house be built unto my name, that I may reveal mine ordinances therein unto my people;
41. For I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times. (Revelation received Jan. 19, 1841; the Saints are commanded to build a temple) D&C 124:33-34,38-41

Related Witnesses:

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

What is bound or sealed in the temples of the Lord, is also sealed in heaven. This is the great authority which Elijah restored. It also covers ordinances performed for the living as well as for the dead. The Prophet said that all of the ordinances for the living are required in behalf of all the dead who are entitled to the fulness of the exaltation. CHMR2:329

Joseph Smith

Yea the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house. (Vision manifested to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple, April 3, 1836) D&C 110:9

Author's Note: There have been times when temple ordinances have been administered in places other than in temples. Before the Nauvoo Temple was built, baptisms for the dead were performed in the Mississippi River for a limited time. The Lord then told Joseph "after you have had sufficient time to build a house to me, wherein the ordinance of baptizing for the dead belongeth, and for which the same was instituted from before the foundation of the world, your baptisms for your dead cannot be acceptable unto me. . . ." (See D&C 124.) The temple endowment has also been administered outside the temple both in Nauvoo and in Great Salt Lake City while a temple was waiting to be built. (See HC6:319.) But since temples have been available, these ordinances are now performed only in temples.

810. The temple endowment comprises the receiving of certain sacred ordinances necessary to enable us to gain salvation (in the celestial kingdom).

President Brigham Young
Joseph Smith
Related Witnesses
Joseph Smith
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Smith
John A. Widtsoe
James E. Talmage

President Brigham Young,
quoted by John A. Widtsoe

Your endowment is, to receive all those ordinances in the house of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence of the Father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, being enabled to give them the key words, the signs and tokens, pertaining to the holy Priesthood, and gain eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell. (Oration delivered on laying the South-East Cornerstone of the Salt Lake Temple, April 1853, JD2:31) DBY:416; MPSG1988:157

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

The declaration this morning is, that as soon as the Temple and baptismal font are prepared, we calculate to give the Elders of Israel their washings and anointings, and attend to those last and more impressive ordinances, without which we cannot obtain celestial thrones. But there must be a holy place prepared for that purpose. There was a proclamation made during the time that the foundation of the Temple was laid to that effect, and there are provisions made until the work is completed, so that men may receive their endowments and be made kings and priests unto the Most High God, having nothing to do with temporal things, but their whole time will be taken up with things pertaining to the house of God. There must, however, be a place built expressly for that purpose, and for men to be baptized for their dead. It must be built in this the central place; for every man who wishes to save his father, mother, brothers, sisters and friends, must go through all the ordinances for each one of them separately, the same as for himself, from baptism to ordination, washings and anointings, and receive all the keys and powers of the Priesthood, the same as for himself. . . .
The Lord has an established law in relation to the matter: there must be a particular spot for the salvation of our dead. I verily believe there will be a place, and hence men who want to save their dead can come and bring their families, do their work by being baptized and attending to the other ordinances for their dead, and then may go back again to live and wait till they go to receive their reward. (General conference of Church, April 8, 1844) HC6:319; TPJS:362-63

Related Witnesses:

Joseph Smith

You need an endowment, brethren, in order that you may be prepared and able to overcome all things; and those that reject your testimony will be damned. (Remarks made in meeting with the Council of the Twelve, Nov. 12, 1835) HC2:309

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Temples, according to the revelations of the Lord, are sanctuaries specially dedicated for sacred rites and ceremonies pertaining to exaltation in the celestial kingdom of God. . . . Temples are sanctified for the purpose of performing rites for and making covenants with the pure in heart, who have proved themselves by faithful service worthy of the blessings of exaltation. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:231) MPSG1988:156

Joseph Smith

John A. Widtsoe

We live in a world of symbols. No man or woman can come out of the temple endowed as he should be, unless he has seen, beyond the symbol, the mighty realities for which the symbols stand.
To the man or woman who goes through the temple, with open eyes, heeding the symbols and the covenants, and making a steady, continuous effort to understand the full meaning, God speaks his word, and revelations come. The endowment is so richly symbolic that only a fool would attempt to describe it; it is so packed full of revelations to those who exercise their strength to seek and see, that no human words can explain or make clear the possibilities that reside in the temple service. The endowment which was given by revelation can best be understood by revelation; and to those who seek most vigorously, with pure hearts, will the revelation be greatest. ("Temple Worship," Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, April 1921, pp. 62-63) MPSG1988:157-58

James E. Talmage

The Temple Endowment, as administered in modern temples, comprises instruction relating to the significance and sequence of past dispensations, and the importance of the present as the greatest and grandest era in human history. This course of instruction includes a recital of the most prominent events of the creative period, the condition of our first parents in the Garden of Eden, their disobedience and consequent expulsion from that blissful abode, their condition in the lone and dreary world when doomed to live by labor and sweat, the plan of redemption by which the great transgression may be atoned, the period of the great apostasy, the restoration of the Gospel with all its ancient powers and privileges, the absolute and indispensable condition of personal purity and devotion to the right in present life, and a strict compliance with Gospel requirements. HL:99-100

811. A temple is built that the Lord might have a place to manifest Himself to His people.

Bruce R. McConkie
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Related Witnesses
President Spencer W. Kimball

Bruce R. McConkie

What is a temple? It is a house of the Lord; a house of Deity that is built on earth; a house prepared by the saints as a dwelling place for the Most High, in the most literal sense of the word; a house where a personal God personally comes. It is a holy sanctuary, set apart from the world, wherein the saints of God prepare to meet their Lord; where the pure in heart shall see God, according to the promises. . . .
When the Lord comes from heaven to the earth, as he does more frequently than is supposed, where does he make his visitations? Those whom he visits know the answer; he comes to one of his houses. Whenever the Great Jehovah visits his people, he comes, suddenly as it were, to his temple. If he has occasion to come when he has no house on earth, his visit is made on a mountain, in a grove, in a wilderness area, or at some location apart from the tumults and contentions of carnal men; and in that event the place of his appearance becomes a temporary temple, a site used by him in place of the house his people would normally have prepared. (The Mortal Messiah, 1:98-99) TLDP:675-76

Joseph Smith

For thou knowest that we have done this work through great tribulation; and out of our poverty we have given of our substance to build a house to thy name, that the Son of Man might have a place to manifest himself to his people.
6. And as thou hast said in a revelation, given to us, calling us thy friends, saying—Call your solemn assembly, as I have commanded you;
7. And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith;
8. Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing, and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;
9. That your incomings may be in the name of the Lord, that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord, that all your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most High—
10. And now, Holy Father, we ask thee to assist us, thy people, with thy grace, in calling our solemn assembly, that it may be done to thine honor and to thy divine acceptance;
11. And in a manner that we may be found worthy, in thy sight, to secure a fulfilment of the promises which thou hast made unto us, thy people, in the revelations given unto us;
12. That thy glory may rest down upon thy people, and upon this thy house, which we now dedicate to thee, that it may be sanctified and consecrated to be holy, and that thy holy presence may be continually in this house;
13. And that all people who shall enter upon the threshold of the Lord's house may feel thy power, and feel constrained to acknowledge that thou hast sanctified it, and that it is thy house, a place of thy holiness. (Prayer revealed to Joseph Smith, offered at dedication of Kirtland Temple on March 27, 1836) D&C 109:5-13

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Related Witnesses:

President Spencer W. Kimball

The house of the Lord is functional. Every element in the design, decoration, atmosphere, and program of the temple contributes to its function, which is to teach. The temple teaches of Christ. It teaches of his ordinances. It is filled with his Spirit. There is an aura of deity. (Dedication of remodeled Arizona Temple, April 15, 1975) (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, pp. 534-35) TLDP:675

812. Church members must be clean and faithful to receive and benefit from the blessings of the temple.

Joseph Smith
Stephen L. Richards
Elder Spencer W. Kimball
President Spencer W. Kimball
Marion G. Romney
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
President David O. McKay
Related Witnesses
Ezekiel
Ezekiel
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Recorded in Leviticus

Joseph Smith

And that no unclean thing shall be permitted to come into thy house to pollute it;
21. And when thy people transgress, any of them, they may speedily repent and return unto thee, and find favor in thy sight, and be restored to the blessings which thou hast ordained to be poured out upon those who shall reverence thee in thy house. (Prayer revealed to Joseph Smith, offered at dedication of Kirtland Temple on March 27, 1836) D&C 109:20-21

Stephen L. Richards

[I]t will never profit you anything by deception to win your way into the temple. It is true that we may deceive our bishops, our presidents of stakes. Some may get recommends without revealing what they ought to reveal. It is useless. All the blessings of the temples are predicated upon faithfulness, upon obedience to the commandments. No blessing is effective unless it is based upon the good life of him who receives it. It is a mistake for anyone to think that by concealing or suppressing something that ought to be known he can secure a recommend to go to the temple. That is futile, and even worse than futile, because the suppressing of the fact is itself an additional offense. CR1959Apr:47

Elder Spencer W. Kimball

But all these ordinances are futile unless with them there is a great righteousness. . . . Sometimes people feel if they have complied with the more mechanical things that they are in line. And yet perhaps their hearts are not always pure. . . . With hearts that are absolutely purged and cleaned, and living the more mechanical things, we are prepared to come into the holy temple. (Dedication of the Swiss Temple, Sept. 15, 1955) (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, pp. 536-37) TLDP:679

President Spencer W. Kimball

This is the work of the Lord, and he has given it to us. It is our responsibility, our pleasure, and our privilege to carry this work forward. We should so organize ourselves and the work that it will go forward in leaps and bounds. In the book of Revelation, John saw that sometime in the future (and it is still in the future to us), those who were faithful and have cleansed their lives will work night and day in the holy temples. Evidently there will be then a constant succession of groups going through the temple somewhat like it was in the days of the Nauvoo Temple [just before the Saints crossed the plains]. ("The Things of Eternity—Stand We in Jeopardy?" EN1977Jan:7) TLDP:678

Marion G. Romney

God grant that we may be worthy to stand in his presence when we come here. To come unworthily into this temple and receive our endowments will not prove to be a blessing to us. Every soul when he comes here should be at peace in his own heart; his feelings should be at peace toward every other person in the world; he should have no hard feelings toward anyone. There should be no feelings of competition, no feelings of jealousy, nothing but the Spirit of the Living God and love toward our fellow men and toward each other, for here in his house we literally stand in the presence of the Lord. God grant that we may do so worthily. ("The House of the Lord," IE1965Feb:120) MPSG1988:161

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

President David O. McKay

Therefore, may all who seek this holy temple come with clean hands and pure hearts that thy holy spirit may ever be present to comfort, to inspire, and to bless. (Dedicatory prayer for the Los Angeles Temple; IE1956Apr:227) MPSG1988:158

Related Witnesses:

Ezekiel

Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.
39. For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house. (Ezekiel declares the abominations of Samaria and Jerusalem) Ezekiel 23:38-39

Ezekiel

And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. (The Lord instructs Ezekiel to reverence the house of the Lord) Ezekiel 44:23

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Yea, I will appear unto my servants, and speak unto them with mine own voice, if my people will keep my commandments, and do not pollute this holy house. (Vision manifested to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple, April 3, 1836) D&C 110:8

Joseph Smith

And go ye out from among the wicked. Save yourselves. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord. Even so. Amen. (Revelation of commandments to Saints in conference, Jan. 2, 1831) D&C 38:42

Recorded in Leviticus

Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them. (Revelation to Moses for the children of Israel) Leviticus 21:23

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Testimony

List of Doctrines on "Testimony"

813. Testimonies of divine truths come through personal revelation.

814. To be capable of entering into celestial glory, each person must eventually gain an independent, personal testimony (of the truth of the gospel and its doctrines).

815. When teachers (missionaries and speakers) bear testimony of a gospel truth they have taught, the Spirit of God witnesses the truth thereof to the heart of the honest seeker.

816. We can gain testimonies of the gospel and its divine truths for ourselves through obedience to God.

817. Gospel study and prayer are necessary means for obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

818. A desire to believe starts the process for developing faith and obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

819. Only by revelation can a person know and testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

813. Testimonies of divine truths come through personal revelation.

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Elder Harold B. Lee
Elder Harold B. Lee
Elder Joseph F. Smith
Bruce R. McConkie
Elder Ezra Taft Benson
President Spencer W. Kimball
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Related Witnesses
Moroni, son of Mormon
Alma, the younger

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

A testimony of the gospel is a convincing knowledge given by revelation to the individual who humbly seeks the truth. Its convincing power is so great that there can be no doubt left in the mind when the Spirit has spoken. It is the only way that a person can truly know that Jesus is the Christ and that his gospel is true. There are millions of people on the earth who believe that Jesus lived and died and that his work was for the salvation of souls; but unless they have complied with his commandments and have accepted his truth as it has been restored, they do not know and cannot know the full significance of his mission and its benefits to mankind. Only through humble repentance and submission to the plan of salvation can this be made known. The way is open to all if they will receive his truth and accept his ordinances and abide faithfully in them. (Answers to Gospel Questions, 3:31) TLDP:685

Elder Harold B. Lee

[R]evelation by the power of the Holy Ghost is required for one to receive a testimony— . . . (Stand Ye in Holy Places, pp. 194-95) TLDP:686

Elder Harold B. Lee

[T]he Lord has said it was not only important that there be revelation to his Church through his mouthpiece, the one who held the keys, but his Church must also be founded on personal revelation, that every member of the Church who has been baptized and has received the Holy Ghost must be admonished so to live that each might receive a personal testimony and a witness of the divine calling of him who was called to lead as the President of the Church, so that he will accept those words and that counsel as if from the mouth of the Lord himself. CR1953Apr:28

Elder Joseph F. Smith

We know that the One in whom we trust is God, for it has been revealed to us. We are not in the dark, neither have we obtained our knowledge from any man, synod or collection of men, but through the revelation of Jesus. If there be any who doubt us, let them repent of their sins. Is there any harm in your forsaking your follies and evils, and in bowing in humility before God for his Spirit, and in obedience to the words of the Savior, being baptized for the remission of sins, and having hands laid upon you for the gift of the Holy Ghost, that you may have a witness for yourselves of the truth of the words we speak to you? Do this humbly and honestly, and as sure as the Lord lives, I promise you that you will receive the testimony of this work for yourselves, and will know it as all the Latter-day Saints know it. This is the promise; it is sure and steadfast. It is something tangible; it is in the power of every man to prove for himself whether we speak the truth or whether we lie. We do not come as deceivers or impostors before the world; we do not come with the intention to deceive, but we come with plain simple truth, and leave it to the world to test it and get a knowledge for themselves. It is the right of every soul that lives—the high, low, rich, poor, great and small, to have this testimony for themselves inasmuch as they will obey the gospel. (In new Tabernacle, Nov. 15, 1868) (Gospel Doctrine, p. 83) TLDP:685

Bruce R. McConkie

And having thus testified again of his divine Sonship, Jesus promises that upon the rock of revealed truth, the rock of revelation, the rock of personal testimony received by the power of the Holy Ghost—upon this rock he will build this Church. And thus it has ever been. (The Mortal Messiah, 3:38) TLDP:688

Elder Ezra Taft Benson

A testimony is to have current inspiration to know the work is true, not something we receive only once. The Holy Ghost abides with those who honor, respect, and obey God's laws. And it is that Spirit which gives inspiration to the individual. CR1983Apr:72

President Spencer W. Kimball

You may know. You need not be in doubt. Follow the prescribed procedures, and you may have an absolute knowledge that these things are absolute truths. The necessary procedure is: study, think, pray, and do. Revelation is the key. God will make it known to you once you have capitulated and have become humble and receptive. Having dropped all pride of your mental stature, having acknowledged before God your confusion, having subjected your egotism, and having surrendered yourself to the teaching of the Holy Spirit, you are ready to begin to learn. With preconceived religious notions stubbornly held, one is not teachable. The Lord has promised repeatedly that he will give you a knowledge of spiritual things when you have placed yourself in a proper frame of mind. He has counseled us to seek, ask, and search diligently. (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 63) TLDP:686

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

The impressions on the soul that come from the Holy Ghost are far more significant than a vision. It is where Spirit speaks to spirit, and the imprint upon the soul is far more difficult to erase. Every member of the Church should have the impressions on his soul made by the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Son of God indelibly pictured so that they cannot be forgotten. We read that it is the Spirit that giveth life. ("The Twelve Apostles," address to the seminary and institute faculty at Brigham Young University, 1958, p. 6) TLDP:683

Related Witnesses:

Moroni, son of Mormon

And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
5. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things. (Moroni's final writings, about A.D. 421) Moroni 10:4-5

Alma, the younger,
quoted by Mormon

For I am called to speak after this manner, according to the holy order of God, which is in Christ Jesus; yea, I am commanded to stand and testify unto this people the things which have been spoken by our fathers concerning the things which are to come.
45. And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety?
46. Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.
47. And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God. (Alma testifies to the people of the truth of his teachings, about 83 B.C.) Alma 5:44-47

814. To be capable of entering into celestial glory, each person must eventually gain an independent, personal testimony (of the truth of the gospel and its doctrines).

President Brigham Young
Elder Harold B. Lee
Elder Harold B. Lee
President Brigham Young
Heber C. Kimball
Elder Harold B. Lee
Related Witnesses
John A. Widtsoe
Henry D. Moyle
President David O. McKay
Stephen L. Richards

President Brigham Young

Those men, or those women, who know no more about the power of God, and the influences of the Holy Spirit, than to be led entirely by another person, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith upon another's sleeve, will never be capable of entering into the celestial glory, to be crowned as they anticipate; they will never be capable of becoming Gods. They cannot rule themselves, to say nothing of ruling others, but they must be dictated to every trifle, like a child. . . . They never can hold scepters of glory, majesty, and power in the celestial kingdom. Who will? Those who are valiant and inspired with the true independence of heaven, who will go forth boldly to do as they please, determined to do right, though all mankind besides should take the opposite course. (In Tabernacle, Feb. 20, 1853, JD1:312) TLDP:683-84

Elder Harold B. Lee

The time is here when each of you must stand on your own feet. Be converted, because no one can endure on borrowed light. You will have to be guided by the light within yourself. If you do not have it, you will not stand. (Stand Ye in Holy Places, p. 95) TLDP:684

Elder Harold B. Lee,

quoting Heber C. Kimball
President Heber C. Kimball, shortly after the Saints had arrived here in the mountains—and some, I suppose, were somewhat gloating over the fact that they had triumphed for a temporary period over their enemies—had this to say: . . . we think we are secure here in the chambers of the everlasting hills where we can close those few doors of the canyons against mobs and persecutors, the wicked and the vile, who have always beset us with violence and robbery, but I want to say to you, my brethren, the time is coming when we will be mixed up in these now peaceful valleys to that extent that it will be difficult to tell the face of a Saint from the face of an enemy to the people of God. Then, brethren, look out for the great sieve, for there will be a great sifting time, and many will fall—for I say unto you there is a test, a TEST, a TEST coming, and who will be able to stand? . . .
You imagine, said he, that you would have stood by [the Prophet Joseph Smith] when persecution raged and he was assailed by foes within and without. You would have defended him and been true to him in the midst of every trial. You think you would have been delighted to have shown your integrity in the days of mobs and traitors.
Let me say to you, that many of you will see the time when you will have all the trouble, trial and persecution that you can stand, and plenty of opportunities to show that you are true to God and his work. This Church has before it many close places through which it will have to pass before the work of God is crowned with victory. To meet the difficulties that are coming, it will be necessary for you to have a knowledge of the truth of this work for yourselves. The difficulties will be of such a character that the man or woman who does not possess this personal knowledge or witness will fall. If you have not got the testimony, live right and call upon the Lord and cease not till you obtain it. If you do not you will not stand.
Remember these sayings, for many of you will live to see them fulfilled. The time will come when no man nor woman will be able to endure on borrowed light. Each will have to be guided by the light within himself. If you do not have it, how can you stand? (Life of Heber C. Kimball, pp. 446, 449-50) CR1965Oct:128

President Brigham Young

I am more afraid that this people have so much confidence in their leaders that they will not inquire for themselves of God whether they are led by Him. I am fearful they settle down in a state of blind self-security, trusting their eternal destiny in the hands of their leaders with a reckless confidence that in itself would thwart the purposes of God in their salvation, and weaken that influence they could give to their leaders, did they know for themselves, by the revelations of Jesus, that they are led in the right way. Let every man and woman know, by the whispering of the Spirit of God to themselves, whether their leaders are walking in the path the Lord dictates, or not. (In Tabernacle, Jan. 12, 1862, JD9:150) TLDP:684

Heber C. Kimball,
quoted by Elder Ezra Taft Benson

Elder Heber C. Kimball stated: "The time will come when no man or woman will be able to endure on borrowed light." (Orson F. Whitney, Life of Heber C. Kimball, 1888 edition, p. 461) CR1963Oct:18

Elder Harold B. Lee

And now, finally, there is still one more thing that is necessary, to my thinking, before that preparation is made for the millennial reign. We must accept the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith as the instrumentality through which the restoration of the gospel and the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ was accomplished. Each member of the Church, to be prepared for the millennial reign, must receive a testimony, each for himself, of the divinity of the work established by Joseph Smith. It was this that was taught plainly by the Saints after the advent of the Savior upon the earth, and one of the leaders in our day has said it again, when he declared, I suppose with reference to the parable of the five foolish and five wise virgins in the Master's parable, "The time will come when no man nor woman will be able to endure on borrowed light. Each will have to be guided by the light within himself." (Life of Heber C. Kimball, pp. 449-50) CR1956Oct:62

Related Witnesses:

John A. Widtsoe

The essential thought must ever be that a man does not, except in his spiritual infancy, accept a statement merely because the Church or someone in authority declares it correct, but because, under mature examination, it is found to be true and right and worthwhile. Conversion must come from within. (Program of the Church, p. 24) TLDP:686

Henry D. Moyle

And finally the missionaries go to bear witness to the world that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that through the gift and power of the Holy Ghost we may all receive this same testimony for ourselves, independent of all else in the world. When received, this testimony is all consuming, all embracing. We know who we are, where we came from, and where through strict obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel we may go. Life's purpose becomes absolute and fixed. Our testimony and knowledge of God cannot be lost except through transgression. With transgression we also lose the Spirit of God and the Holy Ghost as our comforter. CR1963Apr:46

President David O. McKay

Every individual stands independent in his sphere in that testimony, just as these thousands of incandescent lamps which make Salt Lake City so brilliant at night, each one of which stands and shines in its own sphere, yet the light in it is produced by the same power, the same energy from which all the other lights receive their energy. So each individual in the Church stands independently in his sphere, independently in the knowledge that God lives, that the Savior is the Redeemer of the world, and that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored through Joseph Smith the Prophet. CR1960Oct:6

Stephen L. Richards

I repeat what I have said in this pulpit before: My grandfather was the close friend and companion of this man [Joseph Smith]. He knew him as intimately as one man may know another. He had abundant opportunity to detect any flaws in his character and discover any deceit in his work. He found none, and he has left his testimony to his family and to all the world that this man was true, that he was divinely commissioned for the work he had to do, and that he gave his life to the fulfillment of his mission. I have complete assurance that Willard Richards did not lie about his friend, and on my own account, independent of my grandfather's testimony, borne out of the spirit within me, I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the Living God, and the work he was instrumental in setting up in the earth is the veritable kingdom of our Father in heaven. CR1951Oct:118

Author's Note: In regard to obtaining one's own testimony, Elder Bruce R. McConkie wrote, "In speaking of these wondrous things I shall use my own words, though you may think they are the words of scripture, words spoken by other apostles and prophets.
True it is they were first proclaimed by others, but they are now mine, for the Holy Spirit of God has borne witness to me that they are true, and it is now as though the Lord had revealed them to me in the first instance. I have thereby heard his voice and know his word." [italics added] (New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p. xii)
Albert Schweitzer expressed similar thoughts in a non-religious context, "Living truth is that alone which has it origin in thinking. Just as a tree bears year after year the same fruit and yet fruit which is each year new, so must all permanently valuable ideas be continually born again in thought. . . . It is only by confidence in our ability to reach truth by our own individual thinking, that we are capable of accepting truth from outside" (Out of My Life and Thought, p. 173).
If we paraphrase Albert Schweitzer, we may say this about a personally obtained testimony: A testimony that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, or that the gospel is true—or that a particular gospel doctrine is true and is part of the divine plan of salvation revealed from God to man, must come from within us. It cannot successfully be forced upon us from without, no matter how willing a subject we may be. Just as a tree bears year after year the same fruit and yet fruit which is each year new, so for all gospel truths, to have real force and effect in us, to become part of us—to become our own truths—they must be born again quietly in the heart of each of us. Each of us must gain for ourselves, from the inside, our own assurance that the doctrine is true. The gospel truth, then, is not a truth for all of us, but rather a truth for each of us. It is only by confidence in our ability to obtain such a testimony by our own individual effort that we are capable of accepting truth from the outside—from the scriptures or from the pulpit.

815. When teachers (missionaries and speakers) bear testimony of a gospel truth they have taught, the Spirit of God witnesses the truth thereof to the heart of the honest seeker.

Bruce R. McConkie
Nephi, son of Lehi
President Joseph F. Smith
Related Witnesses
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Smith
President Brigham Young
Alma, the younger
Paul
John
Amulek
Nephi, son of Helaman
Nephi, son of Helaman

Bruce R. McConkie

We do two things; we teach and we testify. We have to teach first so that we will have a basis for a testimony. We don't just bear testimony promiscuously; we bear testimony to back up teaching. Missionaries teach and testify. ACR(Sydney)1976:19

Nephi, son of Lehi

[F]or when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men. (Nephi's writings, between 559-545 B.C.) 2 Nephi 33:1

President Joseph F. Smith

The individual testimony is a personal possession. One cannot give his testimony to another, yet he is able to aid his earnest brother in gaining a true testimony for himself. The over-zealous missionary may be influenced by the misleading thought that the bearing of his testimony to those who have not before heard the Gospel message, is to convince or condemn, as the hearers accept or reject. The elder is sent into the field to preach the Gospel—the good news of its restoration to earth, showing by scriptural evidence the harmony of the new message with the predictions of earlier times; expounding the truths embodied in the first principles of the Gospel; then if he bear his testimony under divine inspiration, such a testimony is as a seal attesting the genuineness of the truths he has declared, and so appealing to the receptive soul whose ears have been saluted by the heaven-sent message. . . .
But the voicing of one's testimony, however eloquently phrased or beautifully expressed, is no fit or acceptable substitute for the needed discourse of instruction and counsel expected in a general gathering of the people. ("Testimony Bearing," Juvenile Instructor, Aug. 1, 1906, p. 465) TLDP:688

Related Witnesses:

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

People are converted by their hearts being penetrated by the Spirit of the Lord when they humbly hearken to the testimonies of the Lord's servants. CHMR1:39-40; DCSM:13

Joseph Smith

Therefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth?
22. Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together. D&C 50:21-22

President Brigham Young,
quoted by John A. Widtsoe

The preacher needs the power of the Holy Ghost to deal out to each heart a word in due season, and the hearers need the Holy Ghost to bring forth the fruits of the preached word of God to his glory. (In Bowery, Sept. 16, 1860, JD8:167) DBY:333

Alma, the younger,
quoted by Mormon

And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? 46. Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.
47. And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God.
48. I say unto you, that I know of myself that whatsoever I shall say unto you, concerning that which is to come, is true. . . . (Alma testifies to the people of the truth of his teachings, about 83 B.C.) Alma 5:45-48

Paul

Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.
29. And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds. (Paul has asked King Agrippa "Believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest") Acts 26:28-29

John

It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true.
18. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me. (The Pharisees accuse Jesus of bearing record of himself without witnesses; Jesus responds) John 8:17-18

Amulek,
quoted by Mormon

And now, behold, I will testify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it. (Amulek teaches the people about the atonement of Christ, 74 B.C.) Alma 34:8

Nephi, son of Helaman,
quoted by Mormon

And now behold, Moses did not only testify of these things, but also all the holy prophets, from his days even to the days of Abraham. (Nephi speaks to the wicked Nephites, about 23-20 B.C.) Helaman 8:16

Nephi, son of Helaman,
quoted by Mormon

Behold now, I do not say that these things shall be, of myself, because it is not of myself that I know these things; but behold, I know that these things are true because the Lord God has made them known unto me, therefore I testify that they shall be. (Nephi speaks to the wicked Nephites, about 23-20 B.C.) Helaman 7:29
Author's Note: For a marvelous scriptural example of the workings of the Spirit as a result of teaching and testifying, read Alma 22:3-18. Aaron's teachings to Lamoni's father result in the king's conversion, and in the king saying, "What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy." Then in a prayer to God the king declares further that not only would he give up all his possessions to receive eternal life but he would, in his own words, "give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day." [Italics added.]

816. We can gain testimonies of the gospel and its divine truths for ourselves through obedience to God.

Jesus
John A. Widtsoe
President Ezra Taft Benson
Elder Joseph F. Smith
Elder Spencer W. Kimball
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Related Witnesses
President Spencer W. Kimball
John A. Widtsoe

Jesus,
quoted by John

If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. (Jesus teaches in the temple) John 7:17

John A. Widtsoe

I was brought up in scientific laboratories, where I was taught to test things, never to be satisfied unless a thing was tested. We have the right to test the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. By testing it I mean living it, trying it out. Do you question the Word of Wisdom? Try it. Do you question the law of tithing? Practice it. Do you doubt the virtue of attending meetings? Attend them. Only then shall we be able to speak of these things intelligently and in such a way as to be respected by those who listen to us. Those who live the Gospel of Jesus Christ gain this higher knowledge, this greater testimony, this ultimate assurance that this is the truth. It is the way to truth. All the while . . . we must seek help from the great unseen world about us, from God and his messengers. We call that prayer. A man never finds perfect peace, never reaches afar unless he penetrates to some degree the unseen world, and reaches out to touch the hands, as it were, of those who live in that unseen world, the world out of which we came, the world into which we shall go. CR1938Oct:129

President Ezra Taft Benson

I do not believe that a member of the Church can have an active, vibrant testimony of the gospel without keeping the commandments. A testimony is to have current inspiration to know the work is true, not something we receive only once. The Holy Ghost abides with those who honor, respect, and obey God's laws. And it is that Spirit which gives inspiration to the individual. CR1983Apr:72

Elder Joseph F. Smith

If there be any who doubt us, let them repent of their sins. Is there any harm in your forsaking your follies and evils, and in bowing in humility before God for his Spirit, and in obedience to the words of the Savior, being baptized for the remission of sins, and having hands laid upon you for the gift of the Holy Ghost, that you may have a witness for yourselves of the truth of the words we speak to you? Do this humbly and honestly, and as sure as the Lord lives, I promise you that you will receive the testimony of this work for yourselves, and will know it as all the Latter-day Saints know it. This is the promise; it is sure and steadfast. It is something tangible; it is in the power of every man to prove for himself whether we speak the truth or whether we lie. We do not come as deceivers or impostors before the world; we do not come with the intention to deceive, but we come with plain simple truth, and leave it to the world to test it and get a knowledge for themselves. It is the right of every soul that lives—the high, low, rich, poor, great and small, to have this testimony for themselves inasmuch as they will obey the gospel. (In new Tabernacle, Nov. 15, 1868) (Gospel Doctrine, p. 83) TLDP:685

Elder Spencer W. Kimball

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Related Witnesses:

President Spencer W. Kimball

Every time you bear your testimony it becomes strengthened. ("President Kimball Speaks Out on Testimony," NE1981Aug:7) TLDP:689

John A. Widtsoe

First, to keep our testimony we must feed it, regularly and plentifully. The steps that lead to a testimony: desire, prayer, study, and practice, must be trodden continuously. . . .
. . . . To keep his testimony, a person must increase in the use of gospel principles. There must be stricter conformity with the higher as well as the lesser laws of life—more activity in Church service; increasing charity and kindness; greater sacrifice for the common good; more readiness to help advance the plan of salvation; more truth in all we do. And as our knowledge of gospel law increases, our activity under gospel law must increase. . . .
. . . . The dying testimony is easily recognized. The organizations and practices of the Church are ignored; the radio takes the place of the sacrament meeting; golf or motion pictures, the Sunday worship; the cup of coffee, instead of the Word of Wisdom; the cold, selfish hand instead of helpfulness, charity for the poor and the payment of tithing.
Soon, the testimony is gone, and the former possessor walks about, somewhat sour and discontented, and always in his heart, unhappy. He has lost his most precious possession, and has found nothing to replace it. He has lost inward freedom, the gift of obedience to law. (Gospel Interpretations, pp. 37-39) TLDP:687

Author's Note: When we perform acts in obedience to the will of God, without yet full knowledge that it is of God, the act of doing seems to leave traces on the mind and on the physical system. Hence, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God. . . ." (John 7:17)

817. Gospel study and prayer are necessary means for obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

President Spencer W. Kimball
Joseph Smith
John A. Widtsoe
Elder Joseph F. Smith
John A. Widtsoe
Robert D. Hales
Robert D. Hales
Related Witnesses
George Q. Cannon
Alma, the younger
Reed Smoot

President Spencer W. Kimball

Joseph Smith,
receiving the Word of the Lord

Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.
8. But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right. 9. But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; . . . (Revelation for Oliver Cowdery, April 1829; the Book of Mormon is translated by study and by spiritual confirmation) D&C 9:7-9

John A. Widtsoe

The steps that lead to a testimony: desire, prayer, study, and practice, must be trodden continuously. The desire for truth should stamp our every act; help from God in all things must be invoked; the study of the gospel, which has not been plumbed to its depth by any man, should be continued; and the practice of gospel principles, in all our labors, must never be forgotten.
. . . . By a little such study every day, light will follow light, and understanding will increase. This is doubly important since we live in a changing world, which requires continuous applications of gospel truth to new conditions. (Gospel Interpretations, pp. 37-39) TLDP:687

Elder Joseph F. Smith

If I have learned something through prayer, supplication, and perseverance in seeking to know the truth, and I tell it to you, it will not be knowledge unto you. I can tell you how you can obtain it, but I cannot give it to you. If we receive this knowledge, it must come from the Lord. He can touch your understandings and your spirits, so that you shall comprehend perfectly and not be mistaken. But I cannot do that. You can obtain this knowledge through repentance, humility, and seeking the Lord with full purpose of heart until you find Him. He is not afar off. It is not difficult to approach Him, if we will only do it with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, as did Nephi of old. [2 Nephi 4:32] This was the way in which Joseph Smith, in his boyhood, approached Him. He went into the woods, knelt down, and in humility he sought earnestly to know which church was acceptable to God. He received an answer to his prayer, which he offered down in the depths of his heart, and he received it in a way that he did not expect. CR1899Oct:71

John A. Widtsoe

[E]vidences are not enough to gain a testimony of the truth. . . . I was brought up in scientific laboratories, where I was taught to test things, never to be satisfied unless a thing was tested. We have the right to test the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. By testing it I mean living it, trying it out. Do you question the Word of Wisdom? Try it. Do you question the law of tithing? Practice it. Do you doubt the virtue of attending meetings? Attend them. Only then shall we be able to speak of these things intelligently and in such a way as to be respected by those who listen to us. Those who live the Gospel of Jesus Christ gain this higher knowledge, this greater testimony, this ultimate assurance that this is the truth. It is the way to truth. All the while, brethren and sisters, we must seek help from the great unseen world about us, from God and his messengers. We call that prayer. A man never finds perfect peace, never reaches afar unless he penetrates to some degree the unseen world, and reaches out to touch the hands, as it were, of those who live in that unseen world, the world out of which we came, the world into which we shall go. CR1938Oct:129

Robert D. Hales

Gaining a testimony and becoming converted begins with study and prayer, then living the gospel with patience and persistence and inviting and waiting upon the Spirit. ¶ Once we receive a witness of the Spirit, our testimony is strengthened through study, prayer, and living the gospel. Our growing testimony brings us increased faith in Jesus Christ and His plan of happiness. (CR 2003Oct; Receiving a Testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, Ensign, November 2003, p.28)

Robert D. Hales

A powerful testimony distills from quiet moments of prayer and pondering as you recognize the impressions that will accompany such effort. Humble, trusting prayer brings consolation, solace, comfort, direction, and peace the unworthy can never know. (CR 2001Oct; The Power of a Strong Testimony, Ensign, November 2001, p.87)

Related Witnesses:

George Q. Cannon

Prayer is to the soul like the irrigating stream to our dry and parched fields and orchards. Prayer nourishes, strengthens and imparts vitality to the seed. The seed grows under the influence of prayer. But where prayer is neglected, the results are just as we see them when we neglect to irrigate our fields and orchards. That which is planted there begins to wither and dry up.
So it is with the word of God in the human soul; it must be watered by the Spirit of God. Prayer must be exercised in order to invoke the power and blessing of God to rest upon it. Then the seed grows; the tree grows and flourishes; its branches spread abroad and fill the whole man, and he knows that it is the word of God that he has received. He has a living and abiding testimony in his heart concerning it, and doubt has no room within him. But let him neglect his prayers, let him neglect to cultivate the seed and to watch over it, then it begins to wither, and he begins to doubt and to ask himself whether this is indeed the work of God. (Gospel Truth, 1:345) TLDP:684-85

Alma, the younger,
quoted by Mormon

Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me. (Alma testifies to the people of the truth of his teachings, about 83 B.C.) Alma 5:46

Reed Smoot

I thought this morning that I would refer to the question of prayer, for it is so vital to a man and woman, no matter what position they hold, in order that they may maintain a testimony, if they have one, of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; and if they haven't yet that testimony, I know of no better way in all the world to receive it than to plead with our Heavenly Father that it may be granted unto them. I know whereof I speak, because it was only through the humiliation of my soul and the prayers ascending to my God, at the request of the mother who gave me birth, that I received a testimony that this is God's work; and every prediction made by the servants of God in any age since it was established upon this earth, shall be fulfilled. CR1932Oct:85

818. A desire to believe starts the process for developing faith and obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

Alma, the younger
Elder Harold B. Lee
John A. Widtsoe
Related Witnesses
Moroni, son of Mormon

Alma, the younger,
quoted by Mormon

But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.
28. Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me. (Alma teaches the poor and compares the word of God to a seed, about 74 B.C.) Alma 32:27-28

Elder Harold B. Lee

With these truths made clear, then—first, that a testimony follows the exercise of faith, and second, that revelation by the power of the Holy Ghost is required for one to receive a testimony—the next question of our truth-seeking friend would naturally be, "Just how does one prepare himself to receive that divine witness called testimony?"
As one reads this whole text [Alma 32], he finds clearly prescribed the way by which all may receive a testimony or "knowledge by revelation" as defined above: first, desire; second, belief; third, faith; fourth, knowledge or testimony. . . .
But now we must understand one thing more: Faith necessary to knowledge comes by "hearing the word of God," as Paul said. (Stand Ye in Holy Places, pp. 194-95) TLDP:686

John A. Widtsoe

The steps that lead to a testimony: desire, prayer, study, and practice, must be trodden continuously. The desire for truth should stamp our every act. . . . (Gospel Interpretations, p. 37) TLDP:687

Related Witnesses:

Moroni, son of Mormon

819. Only by revelation can a person know and testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

President Lorenzo Snow
Joseph Smith
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith
Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce R. McConkie
Related Witnesses
President Brigham Young

President Lorenzo Snow

But no person can know that Jesus is the Son of God, except by revelation. CR1900Apr:3

Joseph Smith,
quoted by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Salvation cannot come without revelation; it is in vain for anyone to minister without it. No man is a minister of Jesus Christ without being a Prophet. No man can be a minister of Jesus Christ except he has the testimony of Jesus; and this is the spirit of prophecy. Whenever salvation has been administered, it has been by testimony. Men of the present time testify of heaven and hell, and have never seen either; and I will say that no man knows these things without this. (Explaining the priesthood, July 1839) HC3:389-90; TPJS:160; MGSP:8 (in part)

Elder Joseph Fielding Smith

Bruce R. McConkie

"Come unto me" and receive my Spirit, and then shall ye have power to learn of me. This is the great and grand secret. This is the course that is provided for us and for all men, and it is provided in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things. This is the sole and only way to learn of Christ within the full sense and meaning of his tender and solicitous invitation. "No man can know that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." Little slivers of truth come to all who seek to know; occasional flashes of lightning give glimpses of the eternal realities that are hidden by the gloom and darkness of unbelief. But to learn and know those truths which reveal the Son of Man in his majesty and beauty and that prepare the truth seeker to be one with his Lord, such rays of the noonday sun shine forth only upon those who gain the enlightening companionship of the Holy Spirit. (The Mortal Messiah, 1:17) TLDP:283

Bruce R. McConkie

A true prophet is one who has the testimony of Jesus; one who knows by personal revelation that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God, and that he was to be—or has been—crucified for the sins of the world; one to whom God speaks and who recognized the still small voice of the Spirit. (See The Millennial Messiah, pp. 168-70) TLDP:538

Bruce R. McConkie

We have the testimony of the Lord Jesus. We are a testimony-bearing people. When we say we have a testimony of this work, we mean three things in particular: we mean, number one; that we know by the revelations of the Holy Spirit to our souls that Jesus is the Lord, that he was born into the world as the literal Son of God, that he came with the power of immortality because God was his father and he was thereby able to work out the infinite and eternal atoning sacrifice. The atonement of the Lord Jesus is the most important single thing in all revealed religion. The second point in our testimony is that God has in these last days, through the instrumentality primarily of Joseph Smith, restored anew the knowledge of Christ and the knowledge of salvation and given again every key and power and right and prerogative that enables us men to do the things that will save and exalt us in the highest heaven of the celestial world. And the third great truth in a testimony is to know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as now constituted with President Spencer W. Kimball as its presiding officer is, in the most literal and real and full sense of the word, the kingdom of God on earth, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, and the one place where salvation is found.
Now when we say that we have a testimony of the divinity of the work, we mean those three things. We mean that the Holy Spirit of God has spoken to the spirit within us so that we know by revelation—not simply by mental analysis or by reason but by personal revelation born of the Holy Spirit—that those three great verities are precisely that. ACR(Sydney)1976:17

Related Witnesses:

President Brigham Young,
quoted by John A. Widtsoe

If you will follow the doctrines, and be guided by the precepts of that book [the Bible] it will direct you where you may see as you are seen, where you may converse with Jesus Christ, have the visitation of angels, have dreams, visions, and revelations, and understand and know God for yourselves. (In Tabernacle, July 1853, JD1:243) DBY:126; DGSM:5

We Believe: Doctrines and Principles

Monday, December 2, 2013

Teaching

801. Teachers of the gospel are to teach the official views and doctrines of the Church set forth in the Church-published words of the prophets.

Related Witnesses:

802. To convincingly teach the gospel we must live the gospel.

Related Witnesses:

803. Before we can effectively teach the gospel we must first obtain an understanding of the gospel.

804. Church members are to teach only under direction of the Spirit, without which they are commanded not to teach.

Related Witnesses:

805. Church teachers are to avoid discussion of theories and "mysteries"—subjects not taught by the prophets.

Related Witnesses:

806. All members of the Church are to confine their public interpretations of doctrine to those that are in harmony with the President of the Church.

Related Witnesses:

Temples

807. The Lord commands the building of temples.

808. Temples are holy sanctuaries for sacred rites and ceremonies pertaining to the living and the dead.

Related Witnesses:

809. Certain ordinances are to be administered only in a holy temple (including baptisms for the dead; washings and annointings; and endowments and sealings for the living and for the dead).

Related Witnesses:

810. The temple endowment comprises the receiving of certain sacred ordinances necessary to enable us to gain salvation (in the celestial kingdom).

Related Witnesses:

811. A temple is built that the Lord might have a place to manifest Himself to His people.

Related Witnesses:

812. Church members must be clean and faithful to receive and benefit from the blessings of the temple.

Related Witnesses:

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Testimony

813. Testimonies of divine truths come through personal revelation.

Related Witnesses:

814. To be capable of entering into celestial glory, each person must eventually gain an independent, personal testimony (of the truth of the gospel and its doctrines).

815. When teachers (missionaries and speakers) bear testimony of a gospel truth they have taught, the Spirit of God witnesses the truth thereof to the heart of the honest seeker.

Related Witnesses:

816. We can gain testimonies of the gospel and its divine truths for ourselves through obedience to God.

817. Gospel study and prayer are necessary means for obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

Related Witnesses:

818. A desire to believe starts the process for developing faith and obtaining a testimony of the gospel.

Related Witnesses:

819. Only by revelation can a person know and testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

Related Witnesses: